In Sepember 1939 the motor passenger ship Shropshire of the Bibby Brothers & Co, Liverpool was requisitioned by the Admiralty and converted to an armed merchant cruiser. Conversion was completed on 18 September 1939 the ship was renamed HMS Salopian (F 94).

Displacement: 10549 BRT
Armament: 6x 152mm, 2x 76mm
Speed: 15.5 knots

Career:
October 39 - January 40: South Atlantic Station
February 40 - August 40: Northern Patrol
November 40 - February 41: Northern and Western Patrol
March 41 - April 41: Bermuda and Halifax Escort Force
May 41: North Atlantic Escort Force

At 04.00 hours on 13 May 1941 HMS Salopian (Capt. Sir John Meynell Alleyne, DSO, DSC, (retired), RN) was spotted by the German submarine U-98 while escorting the convoy SC-30 about 400 miles southeast of Cape Farewell and missed with a first spread of two torpedoes because the ship zigzagged every 7 to 12 minutes. The next two torpedoes at 06.19 and 06.22 hours also missed and Gysae had to reload two bow tubes at the surface while running at high speed to search the vessel in the fog. At 07.20 hours, the heavy armed ship came in sight again and five minutes later both reloaded bow torpedoes were fired like in a motor torpedo boat on the surface. The torpedoes hit amidships and in the bow but the U-boat had to dive because the ship opened fire. At 08.00 and 08.50 hours, two torpedoes were fired that both hit in the engine room, but the ship remained afloat. The U-boat then reloaded the tubes and observed how more than ten boats were launched and a motor boat tried to cover the ship by laying a smoke screen. At 10.43 hours, a coup de grâce was fired that struck amidships and caused the ship to break in two and sink in two minutes in position 56º43'N, 38º57'W. 278 officers and ratings were rescued by the British destroyer HMS Impulsive.